The incredibly skinny waistline of this wasp helped name it. They can be found in meadows and open fields.
Females use a paralytic sting on softer insects, like caterpillars. They use their strong jaws to carry the stiff victim to an underground burrow created to hold eggs. When the wasp larvae emerge, they feed on the stiff, yet living victims until they pupate and leave the underground chamber.
Adults feed on flower nectar and small insects.